Being the amazing, true-to-life adventures and (very likely) misadventures of a writer who seeks to take his education, activism and seemingly boundless energy to North Minneapolis, (NoMi) to help with a process of turning a rapidly revitalizing neighborhood into something approaching Urban Utopia. I am here to be near my child. From 02/08 to 06/15 this blog pushed free speech to the envelope, so others could take heart and speak unafraid. Email me at hoffjohnw@gmail.com

That is NOT how much Pamiko paid for the property. The city and county records simply are not up to date by, oh gee, a full year. In fact, other online real estate data shows Pamiko bought the property on November 13, 2008. Care to guess how much Pamiko paid for it?

And, actually, I remember when 2400 Lyndale Ave. N. went on the market. For one thing, I personally made a couple 311 calls on the place--it's hard to remember the details, since my 311 calls literally number in the thousands--and I also remember when the house was "trashed out" before hitting the market. In fact, I specifically recall how the dumpster sat by the property, day after day, filled to overflowing...and some of the items inside the dumpster included really good quality roast eggplant dip in cans from, like, Europe.

I have reason to believe it was very yummy.

Anyway...

A couple days ago an active and informed member of the neighborhood called me up, saying he'd been reading about the Pamiko scandal on this blog and he was all, like, "I know these properties...I know EVERY ONE OF THEM." The uncomfortable closeness of the story to the fiber of our neighborhood...to our collective neighborhood memory...it is amazing and infuriating. I remember seeing house after house hitting the MLS lists, and thinking how I'd like to buy ANOTHER house in addition to my own, and hoping some good owner occupants would get the houses. Instead, so many of the vacant, boarded up bargain houses were snapped up by Pamiko (Expletive) Properties, and now many are going vacant AGAIN.

I can remember calling 311 on litter at the $2.5 million "slum dog millionaire" house. (And, believe me, a yard has to be really bad before I'll stoop to calling 311 on mere LITTER) I remember 1547 Hillside Ave. N. as the property "almost across from Kip 'n' Kelly and right near Dave 'n' Amy," visible from the front yard of Council Member Don Samuels. And, of course, 621 26th Ave. N. is right in the middle of all the interesting revitalization action happening around Farview Park, next to the house where slumlord Bashir Moghul caught a bullet.

It is indeed a revelation to see a list of houses and think: THAT house? THAT one? I know that house. I have history with that house. Pamiko was involved with THAT house?

By the way, it appears "Pamiko" is a combination of letters from PAul, MIchelle, and KOenig. Marklee Construction appears to bear the middle names of both Paul MARK Koenig and Michelle LEE Koenig. The Koenigs do not appear to be particularly creative people, just narcissistic slumlords who put their names on everything they screw up.

One can't help but hope that, with Christmas and the long post-Christmas weekend ending, the first order of business for some public officials will be getting to the bottom of the Pamiko fiasco.